Joan Boney ... apostle/prophet
A woman, reporting the death of her husband, said, "He is with the Lord."
Where in the New Testament does it say those who die are "with the Lord"?
What the NT says about those who die is the following.
I Thessalonians 4:13-17 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep (dead), that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with HIM.
For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
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My understanding from the Bible is the dead simply "fall asleep".
When we are asleep, time passes and we awaken, sometimes even wondering where all that time went.
I believe the dead are asleep and they will be awaken from the sleep (from death) when Jesus returns "with a shout" ... I Thessalonians 4
And when they awaken, they will rise to meet Jesus in the air. (the resurrection of the dead)
Then those who are still alive on this earth will be changed, shedding these current human bodies, and will then rise to meet Jesus in the air.
Then all will be with Jesus forever.
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So as Christians, it is proper to say someone died and is asleep and we believe he is born again and he will be resurrected from the dead, from his sleep, when Jesus returns with a shout. I Thessalonians 4
I have no problem at all in saying someone died. Some people seem to have problems saying this truth.
But to say the dead person is "with the Lord", I believe is unscriptural and we should not say this nor should we be thinking this.
We don't know where the dead is sleeping. It really doesn't matter.
What does matter is the resurrection that will come when Jesus returns.
Focus on the resurrection.
It is important for us to be scriptural in all things. Many in the church world are not scriptural. They have ideas that do not conform to the Bible but conform to what they find comfortable in thinking. Therefore they live in their own fantasies instead of living in "the light" of the Word, the truth.
We, who are of God, must live in truth of the Bible, keeping our thinking and our words consistent with truth.
Romans 1:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
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